a bleeding purple utah jazz blog

Jazz Notes

A few days or maybe a few weeks ago, there was the following exchange on KFAN between David Locke and some of the other guys:

Q: You know why Carlos Boozer sucked in the Playoffs last year?
A: Because he was tired from playing the whole season.

Looking at the stats, you have to think that there’s some basis of truth to this. Boozer has only been to the Playoffs twice in his career: ’07 and ’08. In ’07, he performed well in the postseason, averaging 23.5 and 12. However, that was with the benefit of one month’s rest from the end of January to the end of February.

Last season, Boozer only missed one game. But as we all know, he stunk it up in the Playoffs and four of the Jazz’s six wins were earned in spite of him. In truth, his play began deteriorating around the New Year, and he averaged just 18.4 & 8.6 in January. After rebounding somewhat in March, his suckstreak set in in earnest in April, when his scoring and boarding plummeted to 13.9 and & 7.4.

The Jazz needs to consider the very real possibility that Boozer can only be effective in the Playoffs if he gets some major rest during the season. If this is indeed the reality, is this a guy you want to commit to long-term?

Before the game and again afterward, [Mo] Williams made a point of going to the Jazz bench to shake hands with the Utah coaches and with general manager Kevin O’Connor.

“I just wished them luck,” said Williams. “I’ll always have a special place in my heart for (the Jazz) organization, especially for Jerry Sloan and Phil Johnson. When I was a rookie, in my opinion, (playing for the Jazz) was the best experience I’ve had as an athlete thus far for my career. They were extremely fair. … They really put in the work to help me get better as a basketball player and helped me learn the point guard position.”

Word of the Day: MILLSAPIAN
Williams wore a blue brace on his right knee with a white sleeve running down to his calf. “If I had two of them, it’d be Millsapian,” said Williams, referring to the two braces that Paul Millsap wore through much of January.
David Stern doesn’t know Ronnie Brewer’s name, but Dime recognizes his jamming skills:

Next time we put together a list of the Top 10 Best In-Game Dunkers, we’d be crazy not to include Ronnie Brewer (who could be the League’s best kept secret)…

Love his work ethic/can’t wait for his return:

Kirilenko hasn’t resumed practicing yet, but he has been working out on his upper-body strength and doing weightlifting for his legs, including the hamstring above his recuperating ankle. He wants to keep blood flowing, muscles toned and, he said smiling, “so it doesn’t forget how to work.” [source]